Celebrity chef Bobby Flay has dished out sage advice for securing a coveted table at world-renowned restaurants that are often filled to the brim.
The Food Network Star has returned to the screen this summer with new seasons of his hit shows Bobby’s Triple Threat and BBQ Brawl.
In between filming, flying across the country to his restaurants and attending events, Flay sat down with The Wall Street Journal to cook up some advice – including how to lay a seat at some of the best restaurants.
Some restaurant scalpers have found a way to turn dining into a lucrative business by charging their clients over $1000 for reservations and tables at New York City‘s most exclusive restaurants.
Food Network Star Bobby Flay cook up some advice – including how to lay a seat at some of the best restaurants
Flay said the best way to get a table at a restaurant is by showing up, asking for one and having patience
Flay, a native New Yorker, said: ‘I think the best way to get a table in any restaurant is to walk in.
‘If you’re standing in front of somebody and if that person is good at their job, they’re going to make sure they find you a table—maybe not in the next four minutes, but have a drink at the bar, go take a walk around the block.
‘The most frustrating thing as a customer is that you can’t talk to anyone and nobody answers the phone anymore. It drives me crazy.
‘I’m going to root for every restaurant; I’d rather restaurants be super busy than super not busy.’
Flay recently announced the opening of nine new locations of his restaurant franchise Bobby’s Burgers in Utah, reported Fox 13.
The TV star said his favorite menu item from Bobby’s Burgers is the crunch burger.
‘For Bobby’s Burgers, it’s a crunch burger medium: a medium burger with two slices of perfectly melted American cheese, crispy bacon and thin crispy potato chips,’ Flay said.
‘We make the sauce, it’s mayonnaise and chipotle and roasted red peppers and some Dijon mustard, our version of special sauce or secret sauce.’
His show BBQ Brawl is a Texas based competition where pitmasters from across the country race to be named ‘Master of ‘Cue.’
Flay said the biggest grilling mistake people make is not letting their food cook long enough.
‘They don’t let the grill do its job, meaning they throw something on the grill, they get nervous that it’s going to stick and they start messing with it way too early. You have to leave it alone,’ he said.
Flay has returned to the screen this summer with new seasons of his hit shows Bobby’s Triple Threat and BBQ Brawl
‘The direct heat on whatever you’re cooking starts to form a crust from the hot grates of the grill and then once that crust starts to form, the grates pull away from the protein and you can easily flip it.’
He also revealed what he thinks is the most overrated and unnecessary cooking tool people purchase.
‘People buy way too many knives. You don’t need 30 different knives,’ Flay said.
‘You probably need four or five: a paring knife, a filet knife, a chef’s knife, a serrated knife.’
Flay credited his father with the best piece of advice he has ever gotten.
‘My father would always say to me, just do the right thing and things will fall into line,’ he said.
‘What he means is don’t take shortcuts, go the extra mile if you need to, even if you don’t feel like it because ultimately you’re looking at the big picture. It might take longer to get to the place you want to be, but ultimately it will work out.’
